New Gingrich: Congratulations, Republicans! Now, get to work

Congressional Republicans and President Trump are now on the verge of enacting the most significant tax cuts and reform in more than 30 years.
After five months of hard work, the House and Senate have passed their versions of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017. All that is left is for the two bodies to agree on a final plan in conference.

Thanks to the leadership of House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Republican majority is close to reaching an agreement – and achieving President Trump’s goal of signing final tax cut legislation before Christmas.

Yes, there are some differences between the House and Senate bills – and the Left and the media will do all they can in the coming weeks to amplify those differences – but Republicans must keep their focus.

Members must continue working as they have been over the past few months and come up with a combined bill that will pass in both houses, give middle class American families the tax cuts they deserve, allow small businesses to flourish and drive our economy, and help make American corporations more competitive on the world stage.

Now, I’m not suggesting this will be easy. Some of the differences in the two bills, such as the way pass-through businesses would be taxed, are non-trivial. Republican Senators must keep in mind that House Republicans are likely to want more conservative measures than the Senate can realistically pass. At the same time, House members must acknowledge that their partners in the Senate do not have the same majority that House members enjoy.

For these reasons, Republicans in both chambers must keep one thing in mind: Both bills offer a dramatically better future for Americans than the current law. It is imperative that Republicans build on the common ground in these bills and keep focus on the framework they laid out in September. Niche policy fixes and other adjustments can be made later.

If Republicans can make sure that the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is signed by President Trump by Christmas, our economy will immediately start growing, there will be more jobs in our country, American workers will see their wages increase, and we will begin a new era of American prosperity and leadership.

If they fail, the economic rally we are experiencing could wane, Americans could see fewer opportunities in 2018, and the chance to make America great again will diminish.

Republicans must accept that the Left and the news media are going to continue to distort the positive impact these tax cuts will have on our country. The liberal elite will do all they can to keep the party and the President from succeeding at anything. They know that if Republicans pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act before Christmas, history will remember this tremendous success rather than the growing pains Republicans wrestled with earlier in 2017.

This is a defining moment for Republicans. They must remain banded together in order to deliver real, meaningful change that will improve the lives of millions of hardworking Americans.

It is time to show the nation what real leadership looks like.

Newt Gingrich is a contributor to Fox News Channel and is a former Speaker of the House.